


Darkness Within

by sihnonrose



Category: Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Conspiracy, Eventual Smut, F/M, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2020-10-04
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:21:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,394
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26822080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sihnonrose/pseuds/sihnonrose
Summary: A medical crew arrives to care for the members of the 501st. Rex and the head doctor grow closer, and circumstances become stranger. Eventually, it can't be ignored, and what is discovered will change the future of the Republic in ways unimagined.Rex and his companions face the near-impossible task of uprooting evil from within the Republic he was engineered to have absolute loyalty to.
Relationships: CT-5597 | Jesse/Original Character(s), CT-7567 | Rex/Original Female Character(s), Padmé Amidala/Anakin Skywalker
Comments: 1
Kudos: 5





	Darkness Within

**_2 Weeks After the Battle of Christophsis_ ** ****

After sustaining heavy casualties in the Battle of Geonosis and the Battle of Christophsis, the Jedi Council decided it would be wise to assign a small team of doctors and nurses to each legion in the GAR. Surgical droids were expensive, and most star destroyers had only one or two. The training the clone medics received proved to be too limited for the grave injuries that could be sustained in battle. Often, the clones with such injuries did not survive the trip to medical frigates. Hiring civilian doctors and nurses seemed like the most logical option.

Rex had limited interaction with civvies. The thought of having a bunch of new people aboard the _Resolute_ made him slightly nervous. Cody had always been more social, more silver tongued. He admired these traits in his _ori’vod._ Rex usually got tongue tied around anyone outside the military. _How do natborns talk to each other, and what about? Food, the weather?_ The crew of medical personnel arrived tomorrow, and Rex felt his heart rate kick up slightly. Not that anyone would know that. He was a clone Captain after all, and would not let his social anxiety be known. 

“Have the men prepared the bunks for the med crew yet, Rex?” General Anakin Skywalker’s voice interrupted his spiralling thoughts. 

“Yes General, the rooms are ready and clean.” he responded. The 501st boys weren’t pleased about having to prepare the bunks themselves, but there were no maid droids aboard the _Resolute,_ at least not yet. Jesse and Hardcase managed to make a game of it though, tying blankets around their waists to imitate aprons, and acting all sultry like the maids in _those_ holovids. They loved to make their brothers smile and laugh.

“Excellent, I know this was far from your men’s favourite task.” Anakin clapped a hand over Rex’s shoulder and smiled, before turning to leave. “You guys can relax for a few days. We have a little while till the next assignment.” Rex was alone in the hallway again. Heading towards the barracks, he felt the same rush of nervousness overtake him.

 _It’s only 15 civvies Rex, get a hold of yourself._ He wanted to feel annoyed at their presence, but he’d already seen so many brothers fall so soon into the war. If it meant less brothers dying, Rex could tolerate the med crew’s presence. 

The doors to the barracks opened. Rex set his helmet down on his cot, and began removing his armour. His brothers were already stripped down to their blacks.

“Do you think there’ll be women in the med crew?” Hardcase asked, lounging with his arms behind his head.

“Probably, there’s female communications and information officers. Why not doctors and nurses?” Jesse said. He was right, though they seldom had to interact with these officers. Unless they were in a battle, there wasn’t much reason to be up on the bridge. Those civvies usually kept to themselves. They’d inevitably be interacting with this med crew much more.

“There likely will be. Remember regulation though, boys. Duty comes first.” Rex was sometimes worried by his brother’s longings for relationships. He couldn’t say he didn’t sometimes have the same thoughts himself, though. _We were bred for war. That is our purpose._

“Ah, you worry too much, Rex. We’ll behave.” Jesse said, though by the way him and Hardcase smirked at each other while saying this made Rex doubtful.

“Right.” Rex shook his head. “Get your beauty sleep, if you want to impress them so badly. Take a cue from Kix.” Rex pointed his thumb over to Kix, who was already asleep. Kix followed a strict sleeping schedule while off duty, believing it was key to good health. He urged Rex to do the same, but paperwork and battle planning kept the Captain awake longer. Even when Rex tried to sleep earlier, he found it hard to rest.

“Yes sir!” Hardcase laughed as Rex turned out the lights. 

\------------------

The next morning, Rex stood in the main hangar with General Skywalker, the Padawan kid Ahsoka, and Kix. The transport with the med crew would be arriving any minute now. He’d managed to sleep off most of his nerves. 

“This is a great development for the GAR. The casualties we’ve had thus far in the war are shameful.” Anakin said, his arms folded behind him. “This med crew will ensure more of your brothers stay alive and well.”

“Yes, General. I’m quite excited to learn more from them. I’m sure there’s a lot they could teach me.” Kix was the most excited at the arrival of the med crew. The medic was always trying to improve himself and his ability. Rex was proud of Kix’s devotion.

“That’s a great mindset to have, Kix. You can never be too knowledgeable.”

“Transport is arriving, General.” Rex said. The small ship entered the hangar, arriving from Coruscant, where the _Resolute_ was currently in orbit. It made a smooth landing.

The transport’s doors opened. 15 people walked out in an organized formation, men and women of several species. At the front, there was a young woman. _She must be in charge._ Rex estimated her to be older than General Skywalker, for sure, but younger than General Kenobi. She was Mirialan, green skinned, with long shiny black hair and large grey eyes, the colour of gunmetal. She had the telltale Mirialan tattoos her chin, and her lips were painted dark red. 

Rex’s heartbeat picked up again. From how warm his face felt, he must have been blushing. _I’m so glad my bucket is on._

“Welcome to the _Resolute!_ Your new home for the foreseeable future. I’m General Anakin Skywalker. This is my Padawan Ahsoka, Captain Rex and our medic Kix.” 

The Mirialan woman stepped forward. “Well met. I’m Rima Ulen, head doctor and trauma surgeon. It’s my honour to be serving your legion.” She bowed first, then her crew did as well.

Anakin chuckled. “No need for the buttoned-up Core worlds speech here, doc. You’ll find that the 501st pays little mind to formalities. Make yourselves at home.”

Rima sighed, and her posture became less rigid. Her crew immediately relaxed as well, smiling and whispering amongst each other. “That’s a relief, General. I get rather tired of formalities myself. Coruscant hospitals are very strict that way.”

“You guys should come to the mess hall later to meet everyone!” Ahsoka moved up to the front, with a big smile on her face. Rex regarded her fondly. Ahsoka often got up to trouble, but he was beginning to care for the kid as he would a _vod._ “It’ll be good to finally have more girls around.” Rima smiled at her, as did most of the crew. “I’d love to.” 

“Come, I’ll show you to the medbay!” Ahsoka walked ahead, Rima and her crew began following. Her eyes met his, or his visor rather, and she nodded. _Shit, shit, nod back._ He does.

“Kix, go with them as well.” Anakin said.

“Yes sir.” Kix led Rima and the others towards the medbay, already beginning with the medical banter. With her heeled boots, she was nearly as tall as Kix.

Anakin came up to Rex’s side. “Will you be going to the mess later, Rex? I think it’d be good for you and your men to have more interaction with natborns.” The Jedi generally encouraged individuality and self worth among the clones, Anakin in particular. He’d encourage his men to get tattoos, dye their hair or name themselves. Anakin had always seen the clones as people, and for that, Rex was thankful.

“I will, sir. They seem like alright people. Will you be there as well?”

“Not this time. I have, uh, paperwork. And a meeting... yeah. Next time though!” Anakin waved as he walked off. Sometimes Anakin stumbled over his words when trying to explain where he was or what he’d be doing. Unusual for a man so sure of himself. _Wonder what that’s about._

Rex sighed. _Guess I’ve got to be social today._ What’s more, Cody wasn’t around to take charge of the conversations. _Get back from your mission already, di’kut._

\------------------

By the time Rex arrived at the mess hall, most of the brothers, and the med crew had left. Ahsoka had left as well. Rex had been delayed by work. He also had to shower. And talk strategy with the General. And talk himself into going. He’d never admit it, but it was times like this that made him realize just how much he relied on Cody in social situations. _This is silly. I’m a Captain._

He nodded to the remaining group as he entered the room. They sat around one table, 4 of the med crew were there, and several brothers. 

“Finally here, Cap. We were just getting to know about civvie life on Coruscant.” Hawk slung an arm around Rex’s shoulder and had him sit. Sitting next to his _vod_ made him feel better. Rima was sitting right across from him, looking right at him. He made eye contact with her again, this time without his bucket. Her stare was intense. Rex swallowed his nerves and met her gaze.

“Hi Captain.” He watched as her red lips formed the words, finding himself fixating on it. _Don’t stare at her mouth, it's weird._

"Hello." He met each of the med crew's eyes. _Should I smile?_ He forced the corners of his mouth up slightly.

“So what were you guys saying about CoCo town? Jesse said. “A diner?”

“Yes, Dex’s diner. Great milkshakes, affordable dinner. Just avoid the alley a block away from there. Not that it’d be much of an issue for you tough guys.” the lanky human male with glasses said. He sat next to Rima, his posture was noticeably more stiff than the other's.

“Maybe we’ll take you guys next time we’re planetside.” the blue-skinned Twi’Lek woman stated, circling her arms around Rima's shoulders. “It’s her favourite.”

“I’m good friends with the owner. I grew up in the building next to it.” Rima brushed some hair behind her ear, a hand grabbing the other woman's arm. “CoCo town has a lot of great spots. We’d be happy to show you guys.”

Rex wasn’t sure what to say to this. While the clones did get shore leave on Coruscant, they usually stuck to 79s and the district surrounding it. He didn’t doubt that other clones ventured out to different areas, but Rex never did. 

“I’d love that! Eating anything but rations and mess hall grub is a treat for us.” Hardcase grinned widely, leaning his elbows on the table, listening eagerly to the stories of delicious food.

"I wanna see that big spaceport with the huge fancy ships!" Hawk said, looking like an excited kid. The pilot truly loved what he did.

"We'll go, _vod._ " Rex turned to Hawk, who nodded in return. _I should allow my brothers the little joys where they can find them. Exploring Coruscant might be nice._

“We’ve also gotta see Kaden’s new baby!” the Sephi man grabbed the glasses guy by the shoulders. “Who is also Rima’s nephew. They’re in-laws.” _Cute,_ _I_ _wanna see._ Rex had always liked kids.

“That means you’re married to her sibling, right?” Jesse asked, leaning against Kix, who looked half asleep. _He must have been talking their ears off earlier, with how excited he was for them to come._ Knowing Kix, he'd have more questions later. His curiosity was never sated.

“Yes it does. I keep a close eye on him, make sure he’s treating my Yuri well.” Rima winked and shoved Kaden's arm lightheartedly. The Twi'Lek woman giggled. Kaden let out a breath, and avoided Rima's eyes. Rex smiled. _This isn’t so bad._

\-------

The night continued on, and Rex became more comfortable. _Civvies aren’t so bad._ Today he learned that Rima is the eldest of 5 siblings, and is closest to the sister who is married to Kaden. The Twi’Lek nurse’s name is Su’ah, the Sephi is Elias. Rima’s brother in law Kaden is still worried about making a good impression, even after 2 years of marriage. Su’ah’s ex is trying to get her back. Elias’ mother is insisting he come back from war, though he'd only just left. _Civvie lives really are kinda like the holovids._ He even ended up offering to walk Rima to her room, which she accepted.

"So the General and the Commander have taken to... throwing you?" Rima laughed while they walked at a leisurely pace.

"Yeah... weird as it sounds. Instead of just tellin' me to jump, they toss me around with the Force." Rex chuckled, "I think at this point they just do it because my reaction is funny to them. Nothing cracks 'em up like hearing their Captain scream bloody murder."

"Quite the Jedi you serve. Or us, rather. They're my superiors now, too. They seem like good people to be serving under."

"I have a lot of respect for General Skywalker. Always in the front lines with us, leading his men with confidence. The Padawan is pretty new around here, but we're all getting to be fond of her. She's a good kid. Skilled too."

"Yes, seems like she is. Sweet girl. And I've heard stories of General Skywalker's heroics. I was pretty excited when I heard which legion I was assigned to."

"I'm honoured to be his Captain. And I'm glad you and your crew are here now, too. We lost a lot of brothers in the last few battles." Rex felt the tips of his ears burning.

Rima looked at him, "Me too. The clone casualties thus far are very troubling. The Council made a wise choice in hiring more medical personnel." 

Her walking came to a halt at a door, not far from the medbay. Since she was head doctor, Rima had her own quarters. A small room, but it was privacy nonetheless. _Isn't she kinda_ _young to be head doctor?_

“Well, Captain. I think your crew and mine are going to work together very well. I had a great time tonight, and so did my companions” She smiled at him, entering the doorway to her room. She smiled a lot, he noticed.

“I did as well, Doctor. See you around.” 

She looked him in the eye a moment longer _._ “Good night, Captain.”. The door closed.

Rex’s heart sped up a beat.

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is my first fanfic, so please give feedback!  
> In the later chapters, there'll be pretty heavy Firefly influence. A lot of the concepts I'll be using are a direct rip from Firefly.  
> This is shamelessly self indulgent, and is pretty much the combination of different ideas I've head throughout quarantine. I really wanted to expand on the clone's individual personalities.  
> It'll be mostly romance for the first few chapters, then shit starts to get weird in the Republic :)


End file.
